Last weekend, I met one of my long time best friends for brunch when she was in town (sarabeth's in case you're wondering). I brought Penelope along because she's just great in restaurants. We dined on so many goodies but to be honest, I would have been happy with only the side corn muffin with a heavy-handed layer of their famous preserves. Penelope, classic threenager that she is, not surprisingly is also not one to try new foods these days. Her current diet consists of pasta with salt (yes salt, not Parmesan cheese. It's like I don't even know whose child she is), chicken sausages which she thinks are hot dogs, fruit of most kinds, yogurt, chunks of mozzarella cheese with tomatoes and carby things that I'd love to live on like pancakes, bagels, pizza and fries.

However, even she couldn't deny her intrigue over the corn muffin and 'jam'. Imagine my surprise when she asked to try a piece (she NEVER does that), gobbled it right up and asked for more (duh).

The next morning, we were up early and walked to our local diner for breakfast. She once again wanted a muffin. I like to think that perhaps this was a turning point.

It got me thinking that maybe she would be open to eating healthier versions of muffins, if I could sneak in fruits and veg. Obviously being sneaky is the key here.

So Saturday, we made these skinny mini banana muffins from Lauren's Latest. I've made these in the past and they were super easy, contain natural sugars and loads of bananas. I also loved that they are mini sized so not only are they the perfect size for kids, but also the recipe made about 40 mini muffins, a batch that I can freeze and will last for weeks with P eating them 2 at a time.

Oh and also, P loved helping make these. Anything that involves peeling a banana and sneaking a few bites while she thinks I'm not looking are a win for her. Also I'm realizing that maybe there's too much sneaking around happening in my kitchen.

In a mixing bowl, gently mix together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg. In a separate bowl, mix together the bananas, syrup, oil, egg whites and vanilla.

Pour wet ingredients into dry and mix until just combined. Scoop into muffin tin by the teaspoon full. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool for a few minutes, transfer to a wire rack. Refill the muffin tin and bake the next round. Or, if you have 2 full mini muffin tins, try baking them at the same time.

Enjoy!

Another, less healthy idea: I've also tried these with a not-so-light dusting of cream cheese frosting. yum.